The present invention relates to a process for producing rapid cooking noodles such as Japanese dried noodles (referred to as "Udon", "Soba", "Hiyamugi" or "Somon" in Japanese), instant oriental or Chinese noodles, macaroni and the like, boiled noodles and thin skin noodles by incorporating in a mix of necessary ingredients an edible emulsifier which is solid at room temperature and/or an edible fat or oil which is also solid at room temperature. The noodles produced by this process are characterized by strands that separate from each other very easily and can be reconstituted into the ready-to-eat state very quickly without sacrificing the noodle's palatability.